Idiom
go for broke
Meaning
To try everything possible or do every last thing possible in a final attempt.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Examples
“He decided to go for broke and bet all his money.”
“With only one minute left in the game, the team decided to go for broke and attack with every player.”
“After years of careful saving, she chose to go for broke by investing her entire life savings into her new startup company.”
Examples
simple
“He decided to go for broke and bet all his money.”
contextual
“With only one minute left in the game, the team decided to go for broke and attack with every player.”
complex
“After years of careful saving, she chose to go for broke by investing her entire life savings into her new startup company.”
Origin
From Hawaiian Pidgin craps slang, meaning “to wager everything on one roll”: one would be broke, i.e. bankrupt, if one lost. Popularized by the movie Go for Broke! (1951), which is named for the 442nd Infantry Regiment’s unit motto.
Key words
Related idioms
- Updated